By Alexia Massoud, Staff Writer July 5, 2026
https://www.expressnews.com/business/article/texas-utsa-swri-tech-agriculture-program-22309757.php
Two San Antonio institutions are teaming up to train students to use cutting-edge technology in agriculture to tackle the growing demand for food amid a national labor shortage in the industry.
The University of Texas at San Antonio and the nonprofit Southwest Research Institute have developed a 24-week program to teach undergraduate students how to use artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and robotics in agriculture.
“There is an urgent need for a well-trained workforce in these areas,” said Mimi Xie, an assistant professor of computer science in UTSA’s College of AI, Cyber and Computing. “We want to train students and make them more interested in graduate study and careers that will modernize the food industry.”
The United Nations estimates that, by 2050, food production must increase by 70% to feed the expected world population of 9.1 billion. That means cereal and meat production must increase, but farmers face “rising costs, complicated regulations and uncertainty around wages and compliance,” according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Ranchers’ margins also are being squeezed by difficulties spurred by the lingering drought and record high costs for feed, fuel, fertilizer, equipment and supplies as the Trump administration’s tariffs, the Iran war and persistent inflation take their toll.
Agricultural workforce shortage
Adding to those challenges is that fewer people are going into farming.
There were an estimated 2.4 million open agricultural jobs in the United States in 2024, with 56% of farmers reporting labor shortages, according to FTI Consulting, a global consulting firm.
Agriculture employment — which includes anyone who works on farms, in forestry, logging, fishing, hunting and trapping — as a share of total U.S. employment plunged from 13% in 1948 to 2% in 2017, according to a 2025 report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. During the seven decades studied, farm employment, which accounts for most agricultural employment, fell 81%. The decline in farm labor occurred as workers sought higher wages and other income opportunities in the nonfarm sector, the report added.
Supported by a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Research and Extension Experiences for Undergraduates program, known as REEL-A3, aims to address the agricultural labor shortage while giving students the opportunity to enter a “high-paying, high-growth industry.”
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The goal is to ensure that Texas has a workforce ready to help the state and nation agriculture sectors make the transition from traditional farming practices to high-efficiency “smart agriculture.”
“Smart agriculture,” which uses modern agricultural technologies, is “crucial for addressing global food security and environmental sustainability challenges amidst a growing population and climate change,” according to an article in Frontiers in Plant Science, a peer-reviewed science journal. “These innovations, including precision agriculture, biotechnology, smart irrigation, automation, vertical farming, and artificial intelligence (AI), significantly enhance productivity and land use efficiency.”
UTSA said the global smart agriculture market is expected to jump from $12.8 billion in 2021 to more than $33 billion by 2030.
Program will recruit students across South and Central Texas
The REEL-A3 program aims to recruit 40 students over the next five years — not just from UTSA but also from South and Central Texas community colleges and four-year universities. The first cohort will go through the program starting this summer with subsequent groups chosen in future years.
The partnership with SwRI means students will have access to both the nonprofit’s facilities and professional mentors.
UTSA and SwRI labs will be the main locations for the students’ work, but participants also will interact directly with farmers and extension agents at locations such as Fredericksburg.
The program is open to students enrolled in agriculture- or STEM-related programs who have completed at least one year of their program and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher. They also must be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals or permanent residents. Participants receive a stipend, free housing, a meal allowance and travel support.
The program is designed to be completed while students continue their degree programs. It will be split into three eight-week phases across the summer, fall and spring semesters.
“This program goes beyond just the technology,” Xie said. “It provides a holistic professional experience, including mentoring from experts in AI and robotics and professional development for graduate school applications.”